Pellestrina Travel Guide

The Ognissanti Church is the main church of Pellestrina. Achurch was known to be here as early as 1111 but this present building was reconstructed in 1864. It stands in a wide square not far from the promenade - the whiteness of it standing out against the pastel coloured houses around it.

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On the way to and from Chioggia to Pellestrina by ferry you will surely see the"peocere", where mussels are grown. These are like supending fishing huts in the laguna. I was fascinating by these shanty looking huts and was clicking away with my camera during the ferry ride ;-)

Its a bit of a journey to Pellestrina - a bus ride from the Lido to the very end of the Lido where the bus then boards a ferry for the short crossing to the island of Pellestrina - but its worthwhile if combined say with other sights - such as Chioggia - and makes for a complete contrast from bustling Venice if you have time on your itineary. The villages of Pellestina are charming with their pastel coloured houses and lack of tourist tackiness. Fishing and lacemaking are the local industries.

The port of Sant'Antonio di Pellestrina hosts quite a large fleet of fishing boats - there are many to seen. These are used to fish clams, and not surprisingly fish restaurants predominate.

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The Murazzi walls on Pellestrina, built of beautiful istrian stone, was a great feat of engineering, its aim to protect the seaward side of Pellestrina.They were built between 1744 and 1782, and consist of an inner dike, an intermediate strip, and an outer defense It used to stretch more than 20 km / 12.5 miles, until the horrific floods of 1966, when it was badly damaged. The wall was partially restored during the 1970s and is still an impressive sight. Look out for the inscription "Ausu Romano - Aere Veneto" which celebrates the construction of the "Murazzi".(see second pic) It seems "Ausu Romano" has probably the double meaning of "With Roman daring" and "By a Roman enterprise", whereas "Aere Veneto" means "with Venetian money".

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Whilst the beaches of the Lido may be packed in the summer season the beaches of Pellestrina are empty - so at low tide, a walk on the deserted beach at Pellestrina can be made, simply cross over the sea wall where there are convenient steps up to and down to the beach.